SOUR CRIME DONUTS is the tenth book in the Deputy Donut Mysteries by Ginger Bolton. This is another delicious installment in this 
sweet series featuring Deputy Donut shop owner, Emily, alongside her intrepid kitty, Deputy Donut. The author has created charming characters you can’t help but want to get to know, with imaginative plots to keep you coming back. If you’re new to the series, this can easily be read as a standalone, but you’ll want to go back and start at the beginning to follow along as the characters grow and change. In this newest release, Izzy, a (very) young and overly sweet woman, moves to town and reconnects with Emily. The pair have a connection, even after only spending a day together a decade earlier at camp. Ms. Bolton knows how to create memorable characters—both good and kind people as well as mysterious and sinister types—and sometimes you might not be able to tell them apart. This sets the stage for leading the reader on a merry chase when murder happens.
Izzy has come to the quaint town of Fallingbrook, Wisconsin (after inheriting a substantial amount from her grandfather) with his stipulation that she put it to good use and start a business. She has grand plans to buy property to grow fresh produce year-round. It all sounds perfect until a developer decides he must have the property, no matter the cost, and things turn ugly. When the developer is found murdered with Emily’s donuts close by, suspicion falls on both her and Izzy. The intricate plot, with subplots woven into the mix, had twists and surprises that kept me on my toes as I followed along with Emily in clearing her name. I liked that Emily immediately passes along any information she finds to her detective husband, and doesn’t hide clues from him. There were several suspects, and I never guessed whodunit until the edge-of-your-seat reveal. As the story wrapped up, all my questions were answered, leaving me eagerly waiting for the next book in this delightful series!
There are donuts galore mentioned throughout the story, so be prepared to be hungry. Or you can make one of the donut recipes at the back of the book to munch on while you read! I decided to try the Spiced-Tea Baked Donuts because they can easily be made year-round… although the spices are more reminiscent of fall than of spring or summer. I appreciated that the donuts are baked instead of fried, and the author even includes directions for turning the batter into muffins instead of donuts. Iced with a sour cream frosting and sprinkled with cinnamon, these make for a delicious breakfast or coffee break snack!
Synopsis
Emily feels like a protective big sister around bubbly twenty-something Izzy—a new regular whose enthusiasm for peaches and cream donuts is surpassed only by her dream to start her own business. As if blown in by an August breeze, Izzy pulls Emily into her plan to buy a property at the edge of town to grow and sell fresh produce. But she’s not the only fan of Deputy Donut’s peachy delights . . . or the only patron vying to own the lush parcel of land. And the competition is fiercer than the two women imagined . . .
Petty squabbles turn deadly when a developer with a mean streak is found murdered on the vacant stretch of land. Worse, Emily’s signature donuts are spotted nearby, leading to several potential suspects who could have left their sugar-frosted fingerprints all over the crime scene—including the mayor, a handsome out-of-towner, and even sweet-to-the-core Izzy. When her detective husband discovers poisonous ingredients in the discarded desserts, a shocked Emily must reveal holes in a collection of very fuzzy facts and nab the killer before someone else takes their last bite . . .
A special thanks to Kensington Publishing for offering a print ARC copy of SOUR CRIME DONUTS to one lucky winner! Contest ends September 7, 2025 at 11:59 pm PST and is limited to U.S. residents only. Please use the Rafflecopter box located below to enter. The winner will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)
Makes 10 donuts and/or cupcakes. (*Cupcakes will be denser than normal cupcakes.) For the baked donuts, you will need a nonstick donut baking pan. They have donut-shaped baking cavities.
- Vegetable oil for greasing the pan
- 1/2 cup 14 percent butterfat sour cream
- 1 extra-large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon strongly brewed Darjeeling tea
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon each of the following spices: ground cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, ginger, and nutmeg.
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted or pushed through sieve
- 1/2 teaspoon strongly brewed Darjeeling tea
- 1/4 cup 14 percent butterfat sour cream
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Lightly grease nonstick donut baking pan.
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In one bowl, whisk together the sour cream, egg, tea, vegetable oil, and sugar, until well blended.
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In a larger bowl, stir the flour, spices, and baking soda with a fork until well blended.
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Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well.
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Spoon the batter into the donut-shaped cavities in the donut baking pan, filling them halfway.
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Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until tops are golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
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Invert the pan on a cooling rack. When the donuts have cooled, gently loosen them with a silicone spatula and remove.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter.
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Beat the sugar into the butter until blended.
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Stir in the tea and sour cream.
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If the frosting is too thick, stir in more sour cream. If it's too thin, stir in more powdered sugar.
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Store the frosting in the refrigerator until you're ready to use.
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Frost the donuts then sprinkle tops with cinnamon.
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If any frosted donuts are left over, store them in the refrigerator.
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If you don't have a donut baking pan, bake as cupcakes in cupcake papers and pan for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Emily's home donut baking pan makes only 6 donuts, so she bakes the rest of the batter in cupcake papers in cupcake tins.
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I was provided with an advance copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Sounds like a book I will enjoy.
The donuts look, and sound good! Except for the sour cream. I’d eat them all, while reading a good mystery book.The apple crisp sounds great!
You had me at Spice Donuts! Looks delicious! The book sounds like a great read! Thank you for the opportunity!